This is a small whelk, which is commonly seen on mudflats. It has a rather plump, solid shell with strong axial folds at the shoulder. This leads to a “stepped” spire, although this can be quite eroded. It is usually a uniform grey to grey-brown or grey green and occasionally pale apricot, there is no additional pattern. The internal shell is dull purple.

Mudflats. Often buried from mid to low tide.

This is an active scavenging carnivore and it can sense dead or dying prey in water of 1cm depth or less. Hordes of whelks will converge to feed on the prey. They are not very active in winter and can be difficult to find, however in summer a bit of fish flesh or a broken cockle will soon attract many!

NZ Coastal Marine Invertebrates; Vol 1